Antiagon Fire (68 page)
“They’re all dead,” he said. “At least, we destroyed three warships and a ketch.”
“What about Aliaro?” Vaelora’s voice was cold.
“He’s dead. Everyone in the palace and everyone in the Autarch’s Square who was trying to defend the palace is dead. Skarpa holds Liantiago as acting regional governor.”
“That was too good a death for him.” Her voice caught. “I was going to name her Chaerila…”
For several moments Quaeryt could say nothing as he held her hands in his.
Then, abruptly, Vaelora cleared her throat and looked at Quaeryt. “Once I recover fully, dearest, I will need some new clothes. Most everything got burned up, and I was a little … occupied.”
Quaeryt swallowed.
Clothes? How could she …
Then he almost shook his head, realizing that she was trying to divert him … and herself. He managed to offer a smile. “We should be able to manage that, after all you’ve been through.”
“I didn’t lose everything, though. Almost, but I did save this.” Vaelora held up a small leatherbound volume.
Somehow,
Rholan and the Nameless
didn’t seem so terribly important as, still on his knees, he leaned forward and put his arms around her once more.
Tor Books by L. E. Modesitt, Jr.
The Imager Portfolio
Imager
Imager’s Challenge
Imager’s Intrigue
Scholar
Princeps
Imager’s Battalion
Antiagon Fire
Rex Regis
*
The Corean Chronicles
Legacies
Darknesses
Scepters
Alector’s Choice
Cadmian’s Choice
Soarer’s Choice
The Lord-Protector’s Daughter
Lady-Protector
The Saga of Recluce
The Magic of Recluce
The Towers of the Sunset
The Magic Engineer
The Order War
The Death of Chaos
Fall of Angels
The Chaos Balance
The White Order
Colors of Chaos
Magi’i of Cyador
Scion of Cyador
Wellspring of Chaos
Ordermaster
Natural Ordermage
Mage-Guard of Hamor
Arms-Commander
The Spellsong Cycle
The Soprano Sorceress
The Spellsong War
Darksong Rising
The Shadow Sorceress
Shadowsinger
The Ecolitan Matter
Empire & Ecolitan (
comprising
The Ecolitan Operation
and
The Ecologic Secession)
Ecolitan Prime (
comprising
The Ecologic Envoy
and
The Ecolitan Enigma)
The Forever Hero (
comprising
Dawn for a Distant Earth, The Silent Warrior,
and
In Endless Twilight)
Timegod’s World (
comprising
Timediver’s Dawn
and
The Timegod)
The Ghost Books
Of Tangible Ghosts
The Ghost of the Revelator
Ghost of the White Nights
Ghost of Columbia (
comprising
Of Tangible Ghosts
and
The Ghost of the Revelator)
The Hammer of Darkness
The Green Progression
The Parafaith War
Adiamante
Gravity Dreams
Octagonal Raven
Archform: Beauty
The Ethos Effect
Flash
The Eternity Artifact
The Elysium Commission
Viewpoints Critical
Haze
Empress of Eternity
The One-Eyed Man
*
*
forthcoming
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
L. E. Modesitt, Jr., is the
New York Times
bestselling author of the Saga of Recluce. He lives in Cedar City, Utah.
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
ANTIAGON FIRE: THE SEVENTH BOOK OF THE IMAGER PORTFOLIO
Copyright © 2013 by L. E. Modesitt, Jr.
All rights reserved.
Cover art by Donato Giancola
A Tor Book
Published by Tom Doherty Associates, LLC
175 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10010
Tor
®
is a registered trademark of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC.
The Library of Congress has cataloged the print edition as follows:
Modesitt, L. E., Jr., 1943–
Antiagon fire / L. E. Modesitt, Jr. — First edition.
p. cm.
“A Tom Doherty Associates book.”
ISBN 978-0-7653-3457-2 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-1-4668-1417-2 (e-book)
1. Imaginary wars and battles—Fiction. 2. Life on other planets—Fiction. I. Title.
PS3563.O264A795 2013
813’.54—dc23
2012043364
e-ISBN 9781466814172
First Edition: May 2013